The Greatest Good For The Greatest Number
'Have you thought about talking to Kira? Make a clean breast of everything?"
Jesse allowed himself to indulge in wishful thinking.
"Maybe she'll understand. She loves you, right? And she's always been a generous gal. Maybe she can find it in her heart to forgive you."
'If it were you, would you be able to forgive me
was in on the plan from the very beginning.
He was part of the medical team who conducted the compatibilitylests.
Leland Hewitt was the ideal candidate for a multi-organ transplant.
Over the past year and a half, he knew Austyn had not given up on the search for other suitable donors, but there simply weren't any. Jesse had kept up with the progress of Charlotte's condition.
She was doing well with the help of experimental medications a year ago, but he knew that a transplant was her only hope of survival. Knowing this, he had been shocked beyond words when he leaned Austyn married Kira Hewitt.
"Why?" He confronted Austyn in his office.
Austyn had asked himself that same question many times.
It was a decision made on the spur of the morcent.
He wasn't thinking, wasn't doing any cost-benefit analysis when he made the proposal to Kiza.
It was so out of character, even he had trouble processing it...
But he tried to rationalise it. "Once she becomes completely dependent on me, she'll have no choice but to sign on the consent form when the time comes
Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer, right?
Austyn tried to convince himself that he had taken Kira into his home just to keep an eye on her
He paid for Leland's medical tees and Kira's living expenses.
The more indebted she was to him, the easier it would be when be made that final, crucial request.
Austyn lled to Kira, and he also lied to himself.
Jesse parsed his lips. "What are you going to do about your mum? We haven't found any other suitable heart donor. It's going to take longer than four weeks to find @match." There were about 105,000 patients on the international transplant waiting list.
Many had to wait for more than two years.
And at least a third of them would die before a heart became available to them,
A thorough search was going to take time, time which Charlotte did not have.
Austyn sat up slowly. "She's refused treatment."
"What?" jesse was open-mouthed. 'But she can't she has to go through with the surgery! She'd not going to live past-
'She said no." Austyn cut him off.
"And you just agred with her? Jesse was incredulous.
"She's adamant. And I don't..."
Austyn cradled his head in both hands.Exclusive content from .
"I can't hurt Kira. If I take Leland's heart away, I will have taken two lives."
Leland's and Kira's.
"But.."Jesse was flabbergasted
hwas
He knew how close Austyn was to his mother.
Over the years, he funded half a dozen medical research facilities like Sunway, hoping they could come up with a cure.
He donated millions of dollars to the facilities without batting an eye.
If his heart were a match with Charlotte's, resse had no doubt Austyn would have given it up readily.
How could he be willing to let Charlotte go?
From a purely utilitarian viewpoint, Leland's organs would be put to better use if they were transplanted onto someone who had at least a decent shot at survival.. Jesse sadoctor, but he never subscribed to the lotty ideal of saving every life at all cost As cruel as it sounded, not every human life had equal value.
Leland's Initial score on the Glasgow Coma Scale was one, which meant zeco motor response, zero verbal response and sero eye opening
The Greatest Goud for the Creates Number
His chance of ever waking up was lower than a guy winning the lottery and getting struck by lightning within the same day.
Frankly, the team of doctors treating him had all agreed, privately, that it was past time to pull the plug.
If Austyn had not paid Leland's medical bills, he would have been taken off 1
of life support a year and a half ago.
Call him jaded, call him heartless, but jesse believed that medical resources, already so scarce, should be allocated to help those patients who could still be helped. The greatest good for the greatest mmmber. He thought Austyn believed the same thing, too.
Jesse sighed and reached for another bottle of whiskey.